Cotton Mather was born on February 12, 1663, in Boston, USA, to Increase Mather. He was grandson to Richard Mather and John Cotton, thus his first name, Cotton.

He was to become a leading Congregational minister of Boston’s Old North church, the most celebrated New England writer of his day, and one of the founders of Yale University. Altogether he wrote about 450 books!

His scientific papers won him “a coveted election to the Royal Society of London in 1713” – indeed his studies in inoculation “may be said to mark the beginning of preventive medicine in the Western world” (Who’s Who in Christian History, page 461). He persuaded Zabdiel Boylston to inoculate against smallpox and supported the unpopular inoculation even when his life was threatened.

These days, however, he is remembered mainly for the role he played in the infamous Salem witch trials when teenage girls began accusing various folk in the community of being witches.As a result 20 people were hung and about 200 imprisoned. And Cotton Mather wrote in defence of these proceedings.

The whole process began when four daughters of a Boston mason, John Goodwin, complained of sudden pains. Mather suspected that witchcraft may be the cause, particularly suspecting an Irish washerwoman named Mary Glover. His book “Memorable Providences Relating to Witchcraft and Possessions” (1689) outlined his beliefs on the matter.

When a court was set up to investigate the situation, three of the five judges were from Mather’s congregation and were influenced by Mather to respect what was called ‘spectral’ evidence and the confessions of the witches.

The number of those who confessed increased, prompting Mather to conclude that a veritable army of devils had been sent against them. He preached on August 4, 1692, that the Last Judgement was imminent. On August 19 ex-minister George Burroughs was executed by hanging, on Gallows Hill. However, Burroughs successfully quoted the Lord’s Prayer, which was thought impossible by a witch. Mather insisted on the execution, because Burroughs had been found guilty at trial.

Mather’s involvement in these proceedings mired his reputation and takes focus from his many worthy achievements as a man of God impacting the culture of his day.

An interesting comment in his diary reveals something of the Puritan zeal in those days.He tells us how the Lord helped him preach for three hours at a young people’s meeting – despite the fact he only had one hour for preparation.“And a good day it was!” he adds (Prophets of the Soul, by J. Gray, page 25).

His religious leadership and political influence continued in the spirit of his forefathers, to advance learning and education and to make New England a cultural centre. He hoped to become president of Harvard, which did not happen, but was one of the moving spirits in the founding of Yale.

Cotton Mather died on 13 February – the day after his 65th birthday – in 1728.

This post is based on notes by my late friend Donald Prout. I have updated these historical posts with information gleaned from other sources. I am indebted to Don for awakening in me an interest in Church History. Don’s notes can be found at: www.donaldprout.com

This is the day that … Increase Mather was born in 1639, in Massachusetts.

He was to become a leading light in colonial America – a Puritan of the Puritans, author of 130 books and pamphlets, and president of Harvard University (1681-1701). He is arguably one of just a handful of men who stand out as the greatest of Americans in the Pre-Independence era.

He first wife was Maria Cotton, daughter of another famous Puritan divine, John Cotton, who had fled England, having disobeyed the archbishop’s command to kneel before the sacrament. And the son of Increase and Maria was named Cotton Mather, who published 469 volumes – a brilliant scholar on a wide variety of subjects.

Increase travelled to and from England, standing before Kings, to argue for the values he held dear and promoted in colonial America. This required great personal fortitude and resolve. He was an assiduous student, spending up to 16 hours a day in his books, yet his preaching did not seem affected by the learning, as he maintained a natural and cogent style that connected well with his hearers.

Cotton Mather is usually remembered for his part in the infamous Salem witch trials – especially as he defended the use of spectral (unseen) evidence!This was in opposition to his father’s rejecting such evidence in finding as guilty those accused of witchcraft.But he also wrote the monumental account of the early years of Christianity in America, The Great Works of Christ in America.

Maria died in 1714 and in 1715 Increase married Ann Lake, widow of Maria’s nephew.

Increase Mather died on 23 August, 1723, in the arms of his son.

This post is based on the work of my late friend Donald Prout whose love for books and Christian history led him to collate a daily Christian calendar. I continue to work with Don’s wife, Barbara, to share his life work with the world. I have updated some of these historical posts and will hopefully draw from Don’s huge files of clippings to continue this series beyond Don’s original work. More of Don’s work can be found at www.donaldprout.com.